XEO- A NEW CLASS OF POWERFUL OXIDATIVE OXYGENATING AGENTS IN THE GAS-PHASE( AND XEOH+ IONS )

Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometry h as been used to examine ion-molecule reactions in xenon/ozone and xeno n/methane/ozone mixtures. The cationic ozone derivatives, formed in th ese mixtures, are found to react with xenon, yielding a variety of sta ble products containing the Xe-O bond, i.e., XeO+, XeO2+, XeO3+, XeOH, and XeOH2+. Estimated values for the Xe-O bond strength in the XeOand XeOH+ ions range around 51 and 52 kcal mol(-1), respectively. Both these ions exhibit distinct oxidative oxygenating properties toward s ome simple inorganic and organic substrates. In some representative ca ses, a stepwise oxidation mechanism is observed, involving the homolyt ic scission of a bond of the substrate by XeO+, followed by intracompl ex ion-radical recombination with elimination of the Xe fragment.